005 // Time-Restricted Eating

Here's a little known insight about eating
that will be your new secret weapon to health.

WHEN you eat is just as important as what you eat.

HOW WE KNOW:

In 2012, a research team put 2 groups of genetically identical mice on the same high fat-sugar diet; One group could eat whenever they wanted while the other had to eat in an 8 hour time window. After 12 weeks, the group that ate whenever they wanted suffered from severe metabolic diseases, while the 8 hour group was completely protected-- no weight gain, normal blood sugar and normal cholesterol levels. They continued this study for a year, even adjusting the time window up to 12 hours, with the same results. They found that time-restricted eating allows the digestive system to process food when it is most active while also allowing enough time to repair and rejuvenate, shielding the body from negative effects.

Essentially, they discovered that your body is much happier when you eat in alignment with your circadian rhythm. And when your body is happy, it rewards you.

And yes, they also tested this on humans with equal results. That same year, a man named Steve Swift came across the study, restricted his eating window to 8 hours, and lost 72 pounds in 15 months without changing anything he ate.

FYI: this doesn't mean that what you eat is irrelevant-- this simply shows the power of your digestive system when you work with it.

BE LKE THE MICE (AND STEVE)

To start, don't worry about putting together the perfect grocery list and becoming a meal prep machine; Instead, restrict your eating to a 12 hour window. The priority is to finish eating around 3 hours before you go to sleep. Reverse-engineer the rest from there. The farther away from sleep the better because digestion is slow and food disrupts melatonin production (the hormone that makes you sleepy).

After you feel comfortable with 12 hours, start reducing your eating window by 1 hour. Studies show that health benefits double for each hour you restrict your eating (down to 8).

Most people run into trouble in the evenings. If you get hungry close to sleep... push through, drink water and after about a week, your body will adjust. Also, eating a good breakfast and lunch will help you to not feel starved and overeat at dinner. When you restrict the time you are allowed eat, you tend to give more attention to what you're eating because you have to make the meals count. It's the easiest starting place I've found to get on the right track with eating.

TRE is your new secret weapon. Give it a go.

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To your body's wealth,

TOMMY

// if you need help in any specific way, hit reply and let's talk.

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Email Archive:

​001 // Step 1 to a Healthy Life​

​002 // Your Body Runs on Clocks [Circadian Health]​

​003 // Sleep's Connection to Eating Healthy​

​004 // Make Movement A Movement​